Heating trowel such as soldering iron

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to heating trowel which processes by heat while observing the status of the working material, such as soldering iron, plastic welder, iron, hair iron and the like, and specifically it relates to heating trowel that could be used within few seconds from providing power. 
     A heating trowel comprises a heating wire made of metal plate such as iron chrome alloy and which is thinned to the limit that it could maintain shape, an electrical insulator which is a thin plate of aluminum nitride and the like having more than 10 times the heat conductivity of said heating wire, and a trowel tip/heat storage made from copper and the like having more than twice the heat conductivity of the aluminum nitride and the like and also having high heat capacity, and formed by sufficiently adhering these components closely by pressing and the like using a heat insulating supporter. 
     Also, it is divided into two to a bare heating trowel and a receiving heating device. 
     The control method comprises providing a fixed large amount of electricity for a fixed short period of time to a heating wire by operating a power switch once and rising the temperature of a trowel tip/heat storage rapidly and obtaining a desired temperature by pressing the switch for a simple countable number of times. 
     The heating trowel mentioned above could have 10 times larger heat value than the conventional one so that it could heat the trowel tip/heat storage having large heat capacity rapidly. Also, by rising the temperature of the trowel tip stepwise by switch operation, it could be controlled without a measurement device or a control mechanism. Also, when it reaches desired temperature, the stored heat is large so that it could be used without heating. Therefore, a bare heating trowel free of cords could be used.

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/720,107 filedDec. 2, 2000 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,455,813. The parent application wasfiled with the United States Designed/Elected Office under 35 U.S.C. 371claiming priority to Japanese Patent Application No. JP1999-150410 filedon Apr. 20, 1999. These applications are incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a so-called heating trowel whichprocess the working material by heat while observing its status, such assoldering iron, plastic welder, iron, hair iron and the like, andspecifically it relates to a heating trowel that could be used within afew seconds from providing power.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Conventional heating trowels such as soldering irons are of simplestructure which provides fixed electricity to fixed heating wire, andusing it at a temperature of thermal equilibrium condition. In addition,trowels with large heat capacity are preferred, therefore the timeneeded for heating to appropriate temperature took from 3 to 5 minutes.There are trowels which require only about 30 seconds for heating, butit is small in heat capacity and is easy to overheat, therefore itneeded very precise and expensive control mechanism.

Also there are soldering irons which use assistant heater working whilea switch is pressed along with an ordinary heater, being convenientlyused when the working material has large heat quantity. However, theuser might lose track of time after 4 or 5 seconds of pressing thebutton, therefore in order to prevent overheating from overpressing, theheating ability must be weakened. Accordingly, it took 15 to 20 secondsto heat even when the assistant heater is used at the beginning.

The heater used in such heating trowels is made by winding a Nichromewire to micaceous thin plate, or holding the wire between the thinplates. Therefore, the generated heat is only transferred slowly to thetrowel tip, being obstructed by mica which is a superb heat insulator.Also, large temperature difference is needed, so that the heating wireis heated to near its melting point, making its life short.

There are trowels enabling process in a matter of seconds, such as alarge module for soft soldering numerous terminals of IC or LSI withfixed shape at once by providing electric current of about 500 A.However, it is large in size, and could not conveniently be used incases where shape and heat capacity of the working material change.

A trowel using ceramic heater made by baking metal oxides to ceramicssuch as aluminum oxide is utilized. However, because only small amountof electricity could be provided, the heat value per area is not so big.Also, the thermal conductivity of the aluminum oxide is in the samelevel as the stainless steel, so that it took time for the heat to reachthe trowel tip/heat storage.

An aluminum nitride having high thermal conductivity has high sinteringtemperature, therefore it is technically difficult for the conductivematerial suitable for heating wire to be sintered firmly. Also, there isa difficulty in durability from thermal expansion and thermal shrinkage.

The conventional heating trowels therefore did not heat rapidly, so thatdanger arising from leaving the switch on such as forgetting about itwhile heating, forgetting to turn off the switch when interrupting workand almost catching fire, or being burnt from heated trowel tip and thelike occurs many times. There is no inconvenience in workingcontinuously for a long period of time. However, it is not suitable forusing quickly on small amount of work, or for intermittent work.Therefore, there is a need for heating trowel that could be usedimmediately, and that could be controlled simply and inexpensively.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

A heating trowel is comprised of a heating wire made of metal plate suchas iron chrome alloy and which is thinned to the limit of maintainingits shape, an electrical insulator which is a thin plate of aluminumnitride and the like having more than 10 times the heat conductivity ofthe heating wire, and a trowel tip/heat storage made from copper and thelike having more than twice the heat conductivity of the aluminumnitride and the like and also having high heat capacity, and formed bysufficiently adhering these components closely by pressing and the likeusing a heat insulating supporter.

The control method comprises providing a fixed large amount ofelectricity for a fixed short period of time to a heating wire byoperating a power switch once and rising the temperature of a troweltip/heat storage rapidly within the temperature range suitable forprocessing the working material, or in a temperature range of a half orone third of the suitable temperature range, and obtaining a desiredtemperature by pressing the switch for a countable number of times.

BRIEF EXPLANATION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing one example of the presentinvention applied to a soldering iron,

FIG. 2 is a power circuit diagram,

FIG. 3 is a heating graph of the soldering iron,

FIG. 4 is a plane view showing another shape of the heating wire,

FIG. 5 is another circuit diagram,

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a bare soldering iron and areceiving heating device, and

FIG. 7 is a plane view of a bare plastic welder.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the present invention which is appliedas a heater for soldering iron, with heat insulating supporter and thelike taken away for easier view. A trowel tip/heat storage 1 is a 4 mmsquare rod made from copper with its tip sharpened. To the trowel tip, athin plate 2 of 0.6 mm thick made from aluminum nitride is placed, andthe thin plate 2 is covered with a heating wire 3 of 0.1 mm thick, 2 mmwide made from narrow strip-like iron chrome ribbon which is wound for25 mm in the lengthwise direction. In the actual application, it iscovered with heat insulator such as glass cloth and the like which isadhered closely by being wound by a cover made from stainless steel andfixed, and provided with a handle which is the same as these or set upseparately, so the usage is simplified.

By connecting the lines of the soldering iron as is shown in circuitdiagram of FIG. 2, and by pressing the push button switch 4, it is firstcharged with 28 V from the H terminal of a transformer 5 for the timeset by a timer T, 1 second for example, and 14 A is supplied because theheating wire 3 is 2 Ω, and after 1 second it is charged with 8 V fromthe L terminal and 4 A is supplied. That is, it is heated withapproximately 400 W with H terminal, and approximately 30 W with Lterminal. The electricity is completely shut off by releasing the switch4. By repeating for 3 times the process of pressing in the push button 4and pressing it again after 1 second, soft solder near the trowel tip 1started to melt after approximately 5 seconds.

FIG. 3 is a graph taking temperature as a longitudinal axis, and time asa horizontal axis. The heating temperature at 400 W for 1 second is anaverage of approximately 80° C., which declines as the temperaturebecomes high. The temperature starts at the room temperature of 20° C.,and becomes around 260° C. after third switch operation. This is thetemperature of the heat storage adjacent to the heating wire. It takes 1second for the heat to reach the trowel tip. When the voltage isswitched to 30 W of the L voltage, the temperature reaches around 300°C. in approximately 3 minutes, therefore it is considered to be even atthe unit of seconds, such as the case when the temperature drops byapproximately 100° C. in 30 seconds when the electricity is shut off.

From this graph and from the condition of the soft solder, approximatetemperature could be estimated. It may vary according to thecombination, but the soft solder starts to melt around 190° C. shown bythe dotted lines, and could be used at the temperature of 350° C. andup, so there is a sufficient range of suitable temperature. Therefore,this soldering iron can be used from the time when the soft solderstarts to melt, and can be used again by pressing the switch once ortwice when the soft solder stops melting. When the soft solder forms aball after pressing the switch for 3 or 4 times and the processingbecomes difficult, it is in the condition of overheat. With thesemeasures, the heating trowel of the present invention could be usedwithout control mechanism such as a sensor and the like.

This soldering iron uses conventional 40 to 60 W, however its input isnearly 10 times large. This is because the thermal conductivity of thealuminum nitride is nearly 5 to 10 times larger than iron chrome orNichrome so that heat generated from heating wire could be absorbedrapidly, enabling 2 to 3 times larger than usual electricity to flow.The aluminum nitride transfers the heat rapidly to copper trowel tiphaving around twice the thermal conductivity. As another thermalconductor, when the working temperature or the price satisfies therequirements, silicon carbide or diamond and the like could be used.

In order for the generated heat to transfer from the heating wire madefrom iron chrome and the like and be absorbed rapidly by the heatstorage made from aluminum nitride and copper, the thickness of theheating wire should be thin as possible while maintaining shape of theheating wire. A thin plate of 0.1 mm thick obtainable at present couldsufficiently be used, when it is tempered to a suitable hardness. Itshould be made thin, hard and solid, so that when presswork is notpossible, photo etching or wire cutting and the like could be carriedout for processing.

From the above, the temperature of the heating wire is kept at a levelslightly higher than that of the trowel tip and heat storage. Therefore,when the object temperature of the heating tool is below 400° C., forexample, iron chrome and the like could be used as the material withoutthe fear of tempering, so that life span is extended and heat insulatingis simplified greatly. The material to be used is not limited to ironchrome, so that Nichrome, Kanthal alloy, platinum or other metals usedfor electric heat wires. Also, it could be made to generate heat over500° C.

In order to transfer the generated heat to the trowel tip as quick aspossible, heating should be done from many surrounding side walls aspossible. For the square rod shown in FIG. 1, heating should be donefrom 4 side walls. However, heat is not absorbed in places where themetal heating wire is not adhered closely enough to the aluminumnitride, such as beam or corner of the trowel tip, so that it isinsulated by air and the temperature becomes extremely high, and thewire may be burned out. In order to prevent overheating, the heatingwire should be broadened by 2 to 5 times the width of heating portion sothat heat generation is lowered, as shown in corner 6 of the heater 3shown in FIG. 1.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 4, the heater of the trowel tip shown in FIG.1 could be made in a narrower zigzag shape by forming alternately fromboth sides numerous narrow slits vertical to the lengthwise direction ofthe ribbon made from iron chrome alloy and the like. For example, byforming slits of 0.2 mm wide, and making the width of the heating wireto be 0.4 mm, resistance became 25 Ω so that 100 V could be connecteddirectly, and transformer could be omitted because electricity wasnarrowed down to 4 A. The zigzag portion should return after shortdistance as is shown in the figure, because it is easier to absorbexpansion and contraction from the generation of heat by the heatingwire, and also becomes stronger to deformation such as bending.

However, when the narrow width is widened abruptly, for example widenedby 5 times to 2 mm, stress is centered to the narrow portion immediatelybefore, making it easy to break. Therefore, the width should be changedby gradually widening or narrowing the width, as shown in FIG. 4.

It is difficult to control this heater during its rapid heating byfeeding back the measurement of a sensor. However, it is possible duringslow and level heating or during cooling, so that the heater could beequipped with, for example, a prevention device for over heating whichprevents any heating over 350° C., or a circuit for lighting a signalwhen the temperature drops below 200° C. Moreover, for example, it couldbe formed so as to fix the heating time in the beginning, and theelectricity provided is declined after reaching the suitable temperatureso that ordinary temperature control could be obtained. In such case,heat value is constantly low when in use, so that great merit will belost. Also, it is usually heated which leads to loss of energy, and thecontrol device is expensive.

The control method of the present invention is as follows. Thetemperature change of the heating trowel, as shown in FIG. 3, could beregarded as climbing steps of temperature of approximately 80° C. in 1switch operation for 3 times. By making this step smaller, 5 steps areneeded at 50° C., 8 steps at 30° C. This makes the supply of heat moresmoothly, however, number of pressing the switch needed to obtain thedesired temperature climbs to 8 times. It remains in one digit number soit is not too difficult, but becomes rather troublesome.

The step could be made bigger to 200° C. in one step. However, byheating the heating trowel for 200° C. when not enough heat is obtained,soft solder is overheated so that processing is made difficult, and mayprovide bad influence on the confronting electric components and thelike. Therefore, the step should be within the temperature rangesuitable for processing the working material. Preferably, it should beset at 70 to 80° C. from dividing the desired temperature by 2 or 3, sothat it does not overheat when pressed excessively for 1 or 2 times. Itonly needs 3 or 4 pushing to obtain usable temperature from roomtemperature, so it is easy to operate.

The switch 4 of circuit in FIG. 2 serves also as a power switch, so thatelectricity is shut off by releasing the switch, making it convenientand safe in its own way. However, it could be formed a circuit where apower switch 7 is formed independently, and rapid heating is carried outseparately from normal heating for a short period of time set by timer Twith exclusive heating wire 8 by pressing the operation switch 4, asshown in FIG. 5. Moreover, disengagement of power plug could substitutethe power switch. These are another variation of the present invention.The main factor is that fixed high heat block is generated when thecircuit is given instruction by the switch.

Moreover, it may be formed so that the time and the degree oftemperature rise during rapid heating and the heating strength duringlevel heating is adjustable according to heat capacity, characteristicsand the like of working material. In such case, the power control is notlimited to transformer, but electronic control, preferably phase controlusing a thyristor or on-off control using zero-cross switch could beused. The electronic control is smaller in size, so that it could easilybe installed inside the handle. The combination of these controls couldbe used. Also, not only commercial electricity but also a battery andthe like could be used as the power source.

In order to simplify control, a timer could be omitted. A human couldrepeat relatively precisely a short period of time such as one second orso, which could be figured out by human sense from, for example,intervals of heart beats. The settled large amount of electricity couldbe flown into the heating wire by pressing the power switch for theshort period of time mentioned above. The remaining circuit constantcould be set according to the short period of time mentioned above, sothe power-on movement should be repeated for a simple number of times.There may be some error caused from being based on human sense, but itcould be used sufficiently by utilizing with observation of meltingcondition of the soft solder.

It is essential for the heating trowels and its control method of thepresent invention to have large heat capacity at the trowel tip/heatstorage. Therefore, it is convenient to divide the heat trowel in two,as shown in perspective view of FIG. 6. One portion may be a bareheating trowel 10, consisting of trowel tip/heat storage 1 with a handle9, and removing the heating portion. The other portion may be areceiving heating device 11, consisting of remaining thin plate ofthermal conductor such as aluminum nitride, and heating wire. Aluminumnitride and the like could be provided with a cover made from copper andthe like for protection, but it should be small in terms of heatquantity. By composing an inlet 12 or a groove and the like, andcontacting the bare heating trowel 10 closely by inserting or placing itto the receiving heating device, the trowel tip/heat storage 1 isheated.

From the above, the trowel tip/heat storage 1 could be made bigger,because the bare heating trowel 10 does not have heating portion orinsulating supporters. Therefore, although the 4 mm square rod shown inFIG. 1 is big enough for actual use, it could be expanded so that theheat capacity is increased by several times, and it could be easier touse from being free of cords. Moreover, the receiving heating device 11is easier to manufacture, because the limitation on size is lifted. Thecontrol method may be a conventional method or a stepwise heating methodof the present invention. In the latter case, heating is accomplished byinserting the heat trowel 10 and pressing the power switch 13 severaltimes.

The decision on whether the trowel tip/heat storage is big enoughdepends on whether the object work could be accomplished with the storedheat. When it is used for heat process of items that are small in size,the trowel may be small. However, the greater includes the lesser,therefore it is convenient to make it big as possible.

The above-mentioned examples were all concerning soldering irons.However, by changing the shape of the trowel tip and the temperature,almost the same could be said about plastic welders, irons, hair ironsand the like.

For plastic welders, the temperature needed is approximately from 100°C. to 150° C., which is about half of the soldering iron, therefore thestep of the heat, that is the temperature range during rapid heatingshould be around 30° C. The shape could be the same as the solderingiron, T-shaped, provided at the tip with a rotary disk 14 as is shown inplane view of FIG. 7 and the like, depending on the object ofprocessing. The heating method, control and the like are equal to thatof the soldering iron. Also, by dividing the welder in two as is shownin the prior example, forming one portion to be bare trowel 15 as isshown in FIG. 7 and forming another portion to be receiving heatingdevice (not shown) for heating a thick copper disk 14, it could be madefree of cords as well as made small in size, thereby making it a plasticwelder very easy to use.

Industrial Applicability

With the present invention, the heating trowels could be readied in acouple of seconds that even a sensor cannot correspond, therefore itcould be immediately used when needed, so a time loss could beeliminated. Moreover, there is no constant power supply, therefore thereis no fear for a burn or a fire from the trowel tip. Also, there is nooverheating, so that there is no excess use of energy, and the life ofthe heater and the trowel tip is increased.

Since it is not constantly heated, the size could be made small comparedto the heat capacity. For the soldering iron, it could be made shorter.Therefore, induction device and supply device of soft solder couldeasily be added to the soldering iron, and adhesive stick supply devicesuch as a glue gun could easily be added to the plastic welder, makingit more convenient.

It is controlled with a simple circuit and not with precise sensors orexpensive control device, therefore it could be manufacturedinexpensively compared to performance. Especially, when the heating wireis provided narrow and long in a zigzag, the transformer is not neededwith a power supply of 100 V or so, therefore the device is even moresimplified.

When the heating trowel is divided into a bare heating trowel and areceiving heating device, each portion is easier to manufacture.Moreover, it enables bigger heat capacity, transformation to cord-freestructure, easier change of trowel tip's shape, and easier operation.

Iron and hair iron and the like used in everyday life could be equippedwith heater and control method of the heating trowel of the presentinvention. By enabling it to be used immediately when needed, andfreeing it from preheating and excess heating, overall energy savedthroughout Japan would be very large.

What is claimed is:
 1. A heating apparatus comprising: a heat storingtip; an electrical resistance heating element for heating said tip; anelectrical insulator positioned between said heating element and saidtip; said heating element comprising a thin plate of electricalresistance material which is either Nichrome or iron chrome; saidelectrical insulator comprising a thermal conductor having heatconductivity 5 times or more greater than said heating element; said tiphaving either copper or silver or an alloy and having copper or silveras a major ingredient; and said tip, heating element and electricalinsulator being in close thermally conductive association.
 2. A heatingapparatus according to claim 1 wherein said electrical insulatorcomprises aluminum nitride.
 3. A heating apparatus according to claim 1wherein said electrical insulator comprises silicone carbide.
 4. Aheating apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said electrical insulatorcomprises diamond.
 5. A heating apparatus according to claim 1 andincluding equivalents of iron chrome and nichrome including Kanthalalloy, platinum or other metals used for electric heat wires.